Research Initiation Award: Understanding the diversity and evolution of flattended amoebas within "Discosea" using phylogenomics and cytoskeletal architecture

研究启动奖为历史上黑人学院和大学的初级和中级职业教师提供支持，他们正在建立新的研究项目或重新定向和重建现有的研究项目。预计该奖项将有助于进一步提高教师的研究能力和效率，改善其所在机构的研究和教学，并使本科生参与研究经验。 授予斯佩尔曼学院在许多领域具有潜在的更广泛的影响。本项目将研究的变形虫超类群的成员是全球最丰富的微生物之一。它们在维持生态系统方面发挥着重要作用，并对人类造成严重的健康问题。 然而，它们的多样性和分类知之甚少，这阻碍了在生态学和医学研究中的应用。这个项目也将提高研究经验和培养本科生的Spelman学院。大多数微生物变形虫谱系属于两个主要的真核分支：变形虫和根瘤菌。这个项目的重点是变形虫的谱系之间的关系，这是很难解决的。这主要是由于形态特征的缺乏和可塑性以及遗传数据的有限采样。该项目旨在了解变形虫亚群之一的进化，Discosea，使用大量的遗传数据和采用新方法对伪足结构的精细分析。盘形目包括扁平的裸变形虫，具有最多样化的形态。盘海是松散的定义形态学数据，从来没有恢复在任何分子系统发育研究。这两个增加的遗传数据和蛋白质组水平伪足字符将允许重建一个强大的同源性和彻底的形态同源性评估组内。该项目的具体目标是从Discosea的8个核心代表中产生转录组;使用免疫细胞化学和共聚焦荧光显微镜获得细胞骨架结构的新形态学数据;并使用大型遗传数据和形态学特征测试Discosea内的特定系统发育假设。除了Discosea细胞遗传学之外，生成的遗传数据和新的形态特征将有助于为癌症，免疫和胚胎细胞等专门细胞提供细胞生物学见解。

Research Initiation Awards provide support for junior and mid-career faculty at Historically Black Colleges and Universities who are building new research programs or redirecting and rebuilding existing research programs. It is expected that the award helps to further the faculty member's research capability and effectiveness, improves research and teaching at his home institution, and involves undergraduate students in research experiences. The award to Spelman College has potential broader impact in a number of areas. Members of the supergroup Amoebozoa, which are to be studied in this project, are among the most abundant microorganisms globally. They play a major role in maintaining ecosystems and cause significant health problems for humans. Yet, their diversity and taxonomy are poorly known, which hinders applications in ecological and medical studies.This project will also enhance the research experience and training of undergraduate students a Spelman College.Most microbial amoeboid lineages fall within two major eukaryotic clades: Amoebozoa and Rhizaria. This project focuses on the relationships among the lineages of Amoebozoa, which are poorly resolved. This is mainly due to paucity and plasticity of morphological characters and limited sampling of genetic data. The project seeks to understand the evolution of one of the subgroups of Amoebozoa, Discosea, using large genetic data and refined analyses of pseudopodia architecture employing a novel method. Discosea encompasses flattened naked amoebas with the most diverse morphotypes. The Discosea is loosely defined by morphological data and has never been recovered in any molecular phylogenetic studies. Both increased genetic data and proteome level pseudopodial characters will allow reconstruction of a robust phylogeny and thorough morphological homology assessment within the group. Specific objectives of this project are to generate transcriptomes from eight core representatives of Discosea; obtain novel morphological data on cytoskeletal structures using immunocytochemistry and confocal fluorescence microscopy; and test specific phylogenetic hypotheses within the Discosea using large genetic data and morphological characters. Beyond the Discosea phylogeny, the generated genetic data and novel morphological characters will help to give cellular biological insights into specialized cells such as cancer, immune and embryonic cells.